The Children of the Emerald Hearts
by HanaImakura
Summary: A planned-to-be-short fanfic that starts out about DG questioning her feelings of friendship with Glitch. She thinks it could possibly run deeper than that... There is a story that continues from the first one later on in this fanfic.
1. Chapter 1

Children of the Emerald Hearts

Part 1

DG rested her head in an expression of boredom on one of her hands, leaning herself on an arm on the throne. A jewel encrusted crown glittered on the very top of her head and she had not worn her jean jacket or skin tight jeans for some time. For a week or so she guessed. They had been replaced with a light violet silk dress lined in just about every possible area with pure white lace. Her older sister, Azkadelia had requested to give the throne to DG shortly after the defeat of the witch, saying that she did not want to chance falling into another similar trap someday. _DG should be able to avoid such things much easier, mother_ , Azkadelia's voice echoed in DG's mind. DG had just had her first full week as Queen of the O.Z. and she would fully agree- it was not a fun job. Monday's to-do list was to reinstate the Tin Men as the main police force and terminate the Long Coats, then adjust the tax levels, appoint a new captain of the guard, oversee the first wave of legal cases that Azkadelia had rejected… It was not just Monday either. Monday through Friday were all brimming with royal work and none of it was easy.

She was glad to have a breather, but not the same over being bored. Only a few days ago, Glitch was re-titled Royal Advisor but had been unable to focus on a lot of the heavier tasks and decided he would undergo surgery to get his brain put back together. DG suddenly realized he would be having the surgery later today. _I should go. I'm not doing anything else today, so why not?_ , she thought as she quickly left the room. She arrived a few minutes too late to see Glitch before he went in but Raw and Cain were already present. Cain's face went from his usual tough-as-nails expression to a much softer one. Raw's deeply worried expression did the same. "Well hello there, ma'am. How've you been?" Cain winked a bit, not even trying to hide his smile. He knew DG preferred not to have any formalities between herself and her friends- this was a joking tease. DG grinned back. Her friends had not changed and she was certain they never would. "Oh, Cain, stop that." she giggled, albeit a bit nervously, "I've been fine. Though this job isn't the easiest thing in the world…". She trailed off, worry taking over her face as her eyes floated up to the doors that led to the surgery room. "DG… Worried. Can see it on face." Raw's voice floated from behind.

"Yeah, kid, I don't blame ya. He's one of our best friends and if I can make a guess on brain surgeries… Well, I'd say they're probably pretty tough to accomplish." Cain added with a nervous pause, looking in the same direction as DG. "Oh… Umm…" DG caught herself and snapped out of her thoughts. She had heard what her friends were saying to her clearly, but had not responded for a reason. It had occurred to her that she would feel a deep, deep sadness if she lost Glitch. A sadness somehow deeper than the loss of just a friend. "I-It's nothing… I'm sure he'll be fine." she replied, almost talking more to herself than her friends. Cain wanted to interject but he got the sudden feeling that DG needed some space. He went to sit down beside Raw and was a little surprised to hear Raw start to speak. "Raw… Raw… Raw think… Oh, nevermind what Raw think…" he said with a dejected rumble in his voice. He had wanted to do the same thing as Cain, but both knew as well as the other that now was not the time.

DG sat by herself on the little bench facing her friends and again placed her head in her hands in a sort of bored pose, leaning this time forward on her own lap. A few minutes passed between them all in worried silence. "Well, no one's come around to tell us anything went wrong… They'd tell us if something went wrong, right?" DG finally spoke up, sitting up more and looking her friends in the eyes with an even more concerned look. Cain was just about to open his mouth to reply when a nurse pushed open the doors, a little smile on her face. "We succeeded. Glitch's brain has been fully restored. He'll be back on his own feet again in three weeks." she happily announced with a glimmer in her eye.

DG stood up and glanced behind the nurse to see Glitch in bed with an IV, being taken to one of the patient recovery rooms. She bit her lip but the question forming on the tip of her tongue was worth a try to her anyway. "When can we start visiting with him?" she almost sounded demanding, quickly turning to look at the nurse. Her concern almost seemed out of place with her appearance. The bold, regal outfit contrasted with her look of deep concern. "You may have brief visits with him starting two days from now. I'd recommend you all refrain from mentioning anything too problematic or traumatic in front of him though for the next few weeks just in case, too. Not that I think any of you would do so. Just a reminder-slash-warning we have to give for all patients with neuro-surgeries." the nurse chirped in her cheerful tone before closing the doors behind her.

"Two days… I suppose we can wait that long." DG held back a deep sigh, turning to her friends. "Of course we can, kid. Why not? I know it seems long now, but it'll go by pretty quick." Cain said, getting up and placing a gentle hand on DG's shoulder. _Two days… That might as well be an eternity… How can it be only a few days and I miss him so much?_ DG's mind raced. She was baffled, even surprised that she could miss someone this much. She began to question her side of the relationship with Glitch. It had most definitely began as friendship, but to her… This did not seem like just friendship. But she could not be sure just yet. Plus, she had no idea whether or not Glitch felt the same towards her and she might not be able to ask him for a while now without taxing his brain when it needed to recover. Her eyes met the knowing gaze of her friend Raw. No words were spoken, but she could feel that he knew what she was thinking. _Please, Raw, don't tell anyone just yet_ she chewed a bit on her bottom lip for a second.

Cain took a step back and seemed a little taken aback by her expression. "Hey, kid, you okay there? You look worried again…" he asked, this time concerned about DG, after looking her over. She stopped chewing and nodded, looking at her feet now so no one could see her embarrassment. "I'm fine, Cain. I just need to be left alone for a while. I need to do some thinking." she half-lied, hoping Cain would not go into father mode and start asking questions. Cain took a step forward, opened his mouth and pointed slightly in DG's direction, but thought better of it. "C'mon, Raw. Looks like DG needs to work a few things out for herself. Let's go." Cain motioned for Raw to get up and follow him as he made his way out of the hall. Raw stood up and stopped to place a hand on DG's shoulder, getting her attention to listen for a moment. "Raw know what DG feels. But… Raw will not tell anyone unless… Unless DG tells Raw to do so." he whispered in his beastly yet kind voice. Raw never lied. DG had a strong gut feeling that such a concept was impossible for Raw, so his words just then were a bit of a comfort to her ears. "Thank you, Raw. I appreciate it." she replied, half smiling and giving her friend a warm hug.

Raw nodded gladly in return after hugging her and then took off after Cain. Now, DG was alone in the hospital wing and wondering what to do to pass two days. As far as she could recall, there were no checklists for the next two. The weekend was looking so depressing…

Hey there, readers, fellow Tin Man fans! I'm adding this extra note here because I have a few questions about the series and I want to see what you all think. First off, I began to wonder whatever happened to Raw's tribe? Second, why does Lylo tell Kahn that Raw is no longer one of them? Also, is Kahn related to Raw somehow? He seemed very excited to see him before Lylo told him no. My idea is that maybe the witch's troops captured all of them and Raw ran away instead of helping defend his tribe and that's both what became of his tribe before being thrown in cells and why Lylo is at first angry at him. But the whole story is so open for guesses that I wanna hear what some of you all think, too. Please be sure and comment both with reviews and your replies!


	2. Chapter 2

Children of the Emerald Hearts

Part 2

DG had somehow made it to the second evening without much boredom. She had not realized how much fun there was to be had catching up with her family. The night before, she had gotten permission to go with Azkadelia to a club for women in the heart of Central City. There were a few drinks, but most of the evening was spent talking, reminiscing and laughing. It made DG realize that the person who had ruled before her really was not her sister. Without the witch, Azkadelia seemed more laid back, more open, more caring. Even more fun as well. A couple of women from the Outer Zone came in too and hit the dancefloor, which was something DG and Azkadelia were avoiding. It just did not feel right to them, but they did watch the two Munchkin women for a while. Eventually their antics just became too much and DG and Azkadelia could no longer hold back a laugh. It had been fun. Much of the day after was spent catching up with her parents. She worked with her dad to fix a few broken clocks in his workshop, his old one which had been in the castle all along. The entire time, DG smiled, listening to her dad recount memories of dating her mother, of when they were married, of when Azkadelia and DG were born… If she became stumped, he stopped to show her what she should do next. DG wondered how much fun the rest of her childhood in the O.Z. would have been if she had not let go of her sister's hand that fateful day.

Now, in the evening, she was running about in the kitchen, showing her mother how to bake. The cooks were largely surprised that one of the princesses knew anything about cooking since the queen was not required to know much herself but they came to, realizing that DG had been raised away from the rules and limits of being a princess. "And what exactly will this be used for again, darling?" her mother asked, turning over a spatula in her hand. DG got up from peeking at a sheet of cookies inside the oven and walked over to her mother with a smile. "We'll be using that just to pick the cookies up off of the pan so they can cool down on a plate." she replied, unable to hold back a small giggle. She was almost as surprised as the cooks had become when she found out her real mother had never baked before. It was not something DG often did in the other world, but she was raised that knowing how to bake was supposed to be some kind of common knowledge for women, especially mothers. "Oh. I see." her mother giggled with her, realizing how silly the question had been. "What are you going to show me next, DG? I can see you've taken out the other pans and things as well." she gestured with another sweet smile. She was so glad to have both of her daughters restored to her. She had missed them so much.

"Well," DG put her hands on her hips and glanced over the other items on the counters, "Next is going to be a pie… After that, I don't know what.". "I know what." a familiar voice rang from the kitchen entrance, "You should show her a thing or two about how to make a nice, warm cup of muglug.". DG's jaw dropped for a second. _Is that…?_ She wondered, turning to face the kitchen entrance. It was. There was Glitch, standing in the door way, head wrapped in bandages, that goofy grin on his face. "Glitch!" DG exclaimed as she ran up and threw her arms around him. "DG…" he wrapped his arms around her and held her just as tightly. DG collected herself, realized she had held him for more than a few seconds and stepped away, nervously twirling a piece of her hair. "H-How have you been? How did the surgery go?" she almost tripped over her words. Her mother stood watching from a distance, trying to hide a little grin. She could hear how frazzled her daughter was. Glitch beamed at DG's obvious concern. "It went great, I've been told. Both parts of the old noggin are back together again." he replied with relief, pointing to his head. "Oh, I'm so glad to see you're okay…" DG answered with a sigh, "I was so worried…". "That she was, Ambrose. The family has tried to help her stay occupied over the course of the past two days so she wouldn't worry too much." the former Queen spoke as she headed for the entrance. Glitch gave her a smile, too. "Hello, Queen Lavender… Wait." he motioned for her to hold on for a moment before leaving. "Hello to you too, Ambrose. It's good to have you back as well. What's the matter?" she asked, seeing the look of confusion on his face as well as DG's. "If you and Azkadelia gave the crown to DG… Shouldn't that mean that I should be bowing to her and calling her Queen DG instead?" he stumbled over the sentence a bit.

DG and her mother replied at nearly the same time.

"I think that depends on my own choice."

"That depends on what she chooses."

"Oh… Well what would you like me to do?" he asked DG a bit nervously as the former Queen left the kitchen, "I'm so confused about this whole thing.". "I can tell." DG grinned. She paused for a moment. "You should probably just keep calling me DG. I'm a bit uncomfortable with my friends calling me Queen." she found herself chewing her bottom lip again. Glitch seemed relieved again. "Okay… Phew. Would've been a bit weird to me too to call you Queen… That'd be like I didn't even really know you! Which would be wrong because…" he stopped. DG had been staring. "What is it, DG? Do I have something on my face?" he asked, reaching up to feel around on his head. "Oh!" she looked away, "No… No, you're fine, Glitch. I just zoned out is all." she tried to hide. _The way his eyes look when he goes from confused to happy… I couldn't stop staring and he noticed…_ she found her heart was racing and assuming the embarrassment would show on her face, she kept her face angled towards the floor to avoid him seeing.

"Are you sure you're okay, DG? You don't look okay…" he said as he looked her over. "No, I'm fine, Glitch. Really I am… If you're hungry, we should try and make some of that soup you like so much." DG perked up, relieved that she might be able to use cooking to get rid of her embarrassment. "Ooh! Muglug! Yes, that would be great. I'll help!" Glitch cheerily began getting the supplies together. _He hasn't changed… I was worried getting his brain back together would change him somehow… But I guess that really is fantasy._ "Great! So. What do we do? I know soup needs boiled water, but what's the rest?" DG approached with hands on her hips and a happy look on her face. Her cheeks were already beginning to return to their normal color. "The rest? Ha, that's easy. One thing I love about this recipe is it's just so darn simple!" he replied, taking an armful of various vegetables out of the fridge and laying them out on the counter. Pumpkin, squash, cabbage, ginger root… Just a few of the things he had taken out. DG began to wonder what "simple" meant to Glitch now that he had both sides of his brain back.

Everything was chopped up and tossed into a boiling pot while Glitch hummed something familiar. "Hey," DG interjected while stirring her own pot of the stuff, "I think I know that song you're humming.". They had decided to make two pots of the stuff since DG wanted to memorize the recipe hands-on and Glitch was too excited not to do it himself as well. Not to mention the food would spoil faster after being cut so they thought why not use all of it? Anyway… "You do? What song is it? I don't think either half of my brain is having an easy time remembering it right now…" he answered her, giving his pot another stir. "I think…" she started, "That's a Broadway song from where I grew up.". "Broadway? Whats Broadway?" he asked, his interest piqued. "Well… You remember that time we found the Wizard and you said he must be a patron of the theatrical arts?" she replied, giving her pot another glance to see how the stuff was settling. "Yeah… So… Broadway is theater?" he enquired, taking notice of what DG was doing and figuring he should check his own. DG smiled. "Yeah. It's musical theater. Where everyone dances and sings… Usually. There are some plays where they don't dance. That song you were humming is from one of those musicals that doesn't have too much dancing." she tasted the soup with a ladle to see if it needed anything.

Theater had always been something Glitch enjoyed on the side. It was always a lot of fun to watch people put on shows. "… Which musical? You got me wanting to know more about it, DG!" he forgot for a moment about his soup but now had begun to pour some into a bowl and take it to a table to eat. DG began to clean up some of the mess before doing the same. "It's a musical called 'Wicked'… Normally I wouldn't have brought it up here, but my sister's not around so I guess it's okay. Its about this girl around my age who lives in a world like this one. Everyone misjudges her because of the way she looks and her firm beliefs and they think she's a witch. But there's this boy she falls for… He sings that song you were humming. The chorus goes…" she stopped to look up from her soup and she noticed how Glitch had picked up the bowl and was drinking the stuff. It made her giggle a little. "What?" he put it down, "Was I doing something wrong?". "No", she smiled, "I just forgot there was more than one way to eat soup is all.". "Oh. Well there's the way people eat it now and there's the way it was meant to be eaten. There's a good reason this stuff often gets served in cups more than bowls… Anyway, how'd the chorus go?" he leaned in, showing his curiosity. DG opened her mouth to begin singing. "Dancing through life… skimming the surface… lighting where turf is smooth… Life's more painless for the brainless…" she sang softly. "Woah! Wait, wait, wait. 'Dancing through life'? 'Life's more painless for the brainless'? Those are the lyrics?" he interrupted, shocked look on his face. "And you say he's the love interest?" he added, brain obviously racing about this character. _Oh no! What if he's put something together here? What if he's jumped to the conclusion that I…?_ DG put down her spoon. "Well… He turns out to be a great guy in the end. Captain of the guard or something, I think… and he realizes the importance of his love for her…" she tried to explain.

"Oh… Well that's more like it. I mean, I might have both sides of my brain now, but being brainless doesn't make ya so bad… On the other hand though…" he sighed, "I can see how it sounds a lot like me.". "Yeah… Well, there's stories in the other world based on this place. You're in them but I didn't realize it at all until I heard you humming that song… 'Wicked' is one of them, obviously. Although the character portrayals are a bit… off. Usually you're a scarecrow…"she added. "A scarecrow?" he shuddered. Those things really creeped him out. Now he supposed he knew why. They were just all too familiar to him. They WERE him in a way. "And… Who are you usually?" he asked. He was not upset, but a little spooked and yet still curious. "Well… Usually my part of the story seems to be played by a young version of my great great great great grandmother… I guess the same exact story happened to her… Except the witch wasn't in her sister." she replied, taking another spoonful of the soup. Glitch had been right- it was pretty tasty stuff. "Hey, this stuff's not half bad, Glitch." she decided to try to change the subject. She did not want to overload Glitch too much with stories from her world about the O.Z. He almost instantly switched topic along with her. She supposed that the old Ambrose might have pressed her on it more, but mixing Glitch and Ambrose probably took traits from both. The ability to switch so quick was something from Glitch. "Heh. Yeah… Wasn't lying when I told ya how amazing this stuff was!" he replied with a grin, raising the bowl again for a sip.

DG finished her bowl and caught herself again staring at him before he noticed. _I guess there's a reason that scarecrow was always my favorite character… The real him is just as sweet and funny… and…_ she snapped out of it, reminding herself that Dorothy never wound up with him in those stories. He finished around the same time and she took both bowls to be washed in the sink. "Thank you for making the muglug with me, DG." he spoke up as he began clearing some of the mess himself to help her out. This broke her out of her thoughts for a moment. "No problem. Thank you, Glitch, for showing me how to make it… and how good it tasted." she smiled at him before finishing up the bowls and putting them away. The cooks had long been gone she noticed, which meant it must be pretty late. "Hey, Glitch…" she called after shutting the cabinet door. "Yeah? What is it, DG?" Glitch replied after getting the last of the soup into the storage. "Would it be alright if I walked you back to your room before going back to mine? It's late and I'm worried that if I let you go by yourself, you'll fall or something." she asked him, hoping he would say yes. "Sure. I don't see why not. I am kinda clumsy when I'm not dancing." he shrugged and half giggled at himself.

When they were finished, Glitch put an arm around DG's shoulders and walked out with her. She had forgotten when she asked him that he would most likely have to lean on her due to fatigue and her cheeks flushed again imagining going out like this with him someday. Sure, he was slightly leaning on her, but some part of it felt like being held. Her heart was racing as she walked him to his old room. He told her he had been moved to that room after recovery since it would be more comfortable for him. She went in and made sure he got into bed alright. But she watched him for a moment as his eyes closed before leaving. The moonlight coming through the window lit up his now relaxed features in such an entrancing way… She told herself it was just a trick of the light, although she could not deny the flushing in her cheeks and her racing heart. DG closed the door to his room and went up to her own.

As she laid awake in bed, moonlight also covering her own face, she stared up at the ceiling. Her heart and mind were racing with all kinds of questions. _Does he like me back the same way? How can I find out for sure without being too obvious? What should I do? I'm going to go nuts when he's well enough to be up and walking around all of the time…_ thoughts raced back and forth until sleep finally found and overtook her…


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

 **Meet Ambrose**

The next morning woke DG with quite a shock. Azkadelia had shaken her awake. "Sis! Sis, you've got to get up! I think something's wrong…" Azkadelia looked fearful and was biting her lip. She was almost shouting. DG yawned, stretched and sat up in bed. She was wearing a silk nightgown that complimented the colors she normally wore in her new wardrobe. "What's going on, Az?" she asked, very sleepily. Azkadelia turned her head in the direction of Glitch's room as a loud, painful cry sounded out. Azkadelia helped DG get up and start changing out of her night clothes while saying "It's Glitch. Something's wrong and we need to hurry."

As soon as she had gotten dressed, DG flew out of her room with Azkadelia closely in tow. Both rushed through the castle with deeply worried expressions. By the time they reached the door to Glitch's room, the cries had stopped. Things seemed too quiet. "Glitch? It's us. DG and Azkadelia. Can we come in?" DG asked through the door. There was no reply. So the two sisters let themselves in. Inside, Glitch was sprawled out on the floor next to his bed, sheets and pillows all around. There was a pained expression on his face and his breathing was shallow. "Oh, no! Glitch! What's going on?!" DG cried out as she dropped to her knees and started checking his pulse. She paused to focus, then spoke up. "His pulse is extremely high and I can barely hear his breathing." she started, through a few tears, "Azkadelia, please go and get the nurse. I think something went wrong.". Azkadelia nodded and took off. DG took Glitch's hand and held it to her cheek as she looked at his pained expression. "Hang on, Glitch. Help is coming. You'll be okay…" she sobbed quietly. She was shaking. She knew she would not be able to bear losing him. She had known that since a few days ago.

She could see that his eyes were moving around like crazy beneath his eyelids and she wondered if he was in a nightmare. He made a pained grunt and twisted his features. DG saw this continue for some minutes before it all just suddenly stopped. His face relaxed, his breathing evened out. "Huh…?" DG said, eyes open in shock. She wiped away her tears and took another look. She could hear her sister coming with the nurse. _What just happened? He's okay… But how? He seemed to be dying…_ she wondered. "DG, is he still in pain?" Azkadelia's voice floated in from the entrance. DG turned to see her sister and the nurse standing in the open doorway, looking quite surprised. "I… I don't know." DG sniffed, turning back to Glitch. "He suddenly stopped, but he seems better now."

"Let me check up on him… Excuse me." the nurse said softly, placing a comforting hand on DG's still shaking shoulder as she kneeled down next to her. She quickly checked pulse, breathing, temperature and heart rate. "I can't find anything wrong at present. When he wakes up, take him down to the infirmary and we'll do some further testing with the larger equipment." the nurse spoke gently to DG and nodded to Azkadelia before leaving the room. "I hope your friend is okay…" Azkadelia tried to comfort DG as she came closer. "I hope so too…" DG replied absently. _"Friend"…_ the word had stuck out to her almost painfully. _Somehow, I am finding it difficult right now to attach that kind of label to him…_ Azkadelia seemed to notice her sister's silence and offered, "Would you like me to leave you alone for now? I'm sensing some kind of tension here." Without looking back at Azkadelia, DG replied, "I… I think I have some things to work out for now… Do you think you could go try to meet with Raw's tribe for me, just for now? You just have to let them know what's going on. Let them know that I will get to the negotiations as soon as possible." Azkadelia nodded solemnly and left them.

When they were alone, DG found herself staring at Glitch's sleeping face rather fondly, but also fearfully. _Something seems off… He doesn't seem to have had anything actually bad going on, but… I know what I saw… and heard. Something painful is going on, but somehow, I don't think any doctor would be able to immediately find it out… Even I can't tell… But I hope he'll be okay…_ she was getting lost in her own train of thought. Suddenly, his eyes snapped open and immediately fell on her. Excited, she exclaimed "Glitch! I was so worried!" and threw her arms around him as he sat up, massaging the bridge of his nose. "Who are you? What's going on?" he asked curtly. He did not even move to embrace her back. DG pulled away and sat down. "Glitch? You don't remember me?" she asked, concern in her voice rising as much as the tears in her eyes. "You seem familiar, but I don't believe we've met before, madam." He replied, a largely confused look on his face.

He stood up, dusted himself off and offered a hand to DG, who was still on the floor. "I… I don't know what happened back there. But it must be more serious than I thought if you've suddenly lost your memory…" she sobbed. "Lost my memory?" he scoffed, taking his hand back. "Madam, I'll have you know that my memory is perfectly fine. I am the Royal Advisor to Queen Lavender and I am afraid there is no time to lose. Azkadelia's men have taken her hostage and I have got to save her." He was hurriedly making his way to the door, but DG intercepted him. "Glitch, my mother is no longer Queen of the O.Z… I am. Don't you remember? We were all there for the coronation…" Glitch took a step back. "I beg your pardon, madam, but you must have me confused with someone else. Glitch? Who is that? My name is Ambrose and I will have none of this foolishness when the Queen needs me." His voice was becoming agitated at having been stopped. "Besides," he continued, "You could not possibly be either of the young princesses. Princess Azkadelia is overtaking the throne and young DG was killed and buried many years ago. I know. I was THERE. Now would you please let me pass?" he was getting extremely annoyed.

"DG? Is everything okay?" came the concerned voice of DG's mother from down the hall. DG hoped now that seeing her mother would prove to this "Ambrose", or whoever he was, that things were no longer as he had left them.


End file.
